Short-form video glossary for musicians

9:16 (vertical aspect ratio) · Auto-reframe · Burned-in captions · Clip · Content repurposing · Countdown posts · Cut-down · Filler words · Hook · Karaoke captions · Long-form and short-form video · Lyric video · Out now post · Pre-save · Safe zone · Split screen · Spotify Canvas · Virality score · Word-level transcription

9:16 (vertical aspect ratio)

The shape of a vertical video: 9 units wide by 16 tall, usually 1080 × 1920 pixels. It is the native format of TikTok, Reels, YouTube Shorts and stories. Other common ratios are 16:9 (horizontal, YouTube), 1:1 (square) and 4:5 (tall feed post). More in Video editor →

Auto-reframe

Turning a horizontal video into a vertical one by moving the crop to follow the subject — usually the face of the person talking or singing — instead of cutting a fixed area in the center. More in Video editor →

Burned-in captions

Captions drawn into the video image itself, so they show on every platform and device. The opposite is a separate subtitle file (such as SRT) that the player shows or hides. More in Karaoke captions →

Clip

A short piece cut from a longer video that works on its own: a chorus, a story, a strong line. On social platforms, clips are typically between 15 and 90 seconds. More in AI Clips →

Content repurposing

Getting several pieces of content out of one recording: clips, quotes, lyric snippets, release pieces. It is how artists keep posting without filming something new every day. More in Clips for artists →

Countdown posts

Release pieces that count down to a song’s release: “3 days left”, “2 days left”, “tomorrow”, “today”. They keep the release visible during the week before it comes out. More in Release assets →

Cut-down

A shorter version of a longer piece — for example, a 30-second vertical edit of a music video built around the chorus. More in Music video to Shorts →

Filler words

Words and sounds that carry no meaning in context, like “um”, “uh” or “like”. Removing them makes a clip tighter; leaving one in can keep a joke’s timing. More in Podcast clips →

Hook

The first one to three seconds of a short video, built to stop the scroll: the strongest line, the chorus, a surprising shot or on-screen text that promises something. In songwriting, the hook is also the catchiest part of the song. More in Growing on TikTok as a musician →

Karaoke captions

Animated captions that show a full line and highlight each word as it is sung or spoken. They work especially well for songs, because people read along. More in Karaoke captions →

Long-form and short-form video

Long-form video is anything people watch on purpose for minutes or hours: a concert, an episode, a music video. Short-form video is vertical and usually under a minute or two, discovered while scrolling. Clipping turns the first into the second. More in YouTube to Shorts →

Lyric video

A video that shows the lyrics of a song in sync with the audio, usually over the cover art, an animation or footage from the music video. More in Video Lyrics →

Out now post

The piece that announces a song is available, usually with the cover and a link in bio. A version with a snippet of the music video and the song’s audio tends to stand out more than a still image. More in Release assets →

Pre-save

A link that lets fans save an upcoming song to their library before it comes out, so it appears there on release day. Distributors and link services usually provide it. Step by step, with Spotify and Apple Music: What is a pre-save on tontria.com. More in Release week content plan →

Safe zone

The area of a vertical video that is not covered by the platform’s interface — the post text, buttons and account name. Captions and key visuals should stay inside it. More in Horizontal to vertical video →

Split screen

A vertical layout that shows two people at once, one above the other. Useful for podcasts and interviews where both reactions matter. More in Podcast clips →

Spotify Canvas

A short, looping vertical video (a few seconds long) that plays behind a track in the Spotify app instead of the static cover. Artists upload it through Spotify for Artists. More in What is a Spotify Canvas and how to create one →

Virality score

A score an AI clipping tool gives each suggested clip to estimate how well it may perform as a short, based on things like the hook, completeness and clarity. It helps you decide what to review first; it is not a guarantee of views. More in AI Clips →

Word-level transcription

A transcript where each word has its exact start and end time. It is what lets captions light up word by word and lets you cut a video by editing its text. More in AI Clips →